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Saturday, July 20, 2013

Korean celebrity soldiers face punishment, system abolished

By JONATHAN HICAP, Manila
Bulletin

Eight Korean celebrity soldiers including Se7en and Sangchu of
Mighty Mouth who were involved in the massage parlor incident will be punished
as the Ministry of National Defense decided to abolish the entertainment
soldiers system after it received severe criticism from the public.

Se7en and Sangchu (Photos by www.newsen.com)

In an announcement, the MND said the incident has tarnished the
name of the military and lost the public's trust in the department.

"The primary mission of the squad is to promote the image of
the military and boost troop morale. But a series of unsavory cases have
tarnished the image of our military and lowered morale. As the squad is to
promote the military, public trust is of paramount importance. A variety of
issues have led to a loss of public trust, which is why we decided to abolish
it, said Col. Wee Yong-sub, chief of the ministry’s public information
division, according to the Korea Herald.

The MND's public relations support group will be abolished and the
15 celebrity soldiers under it will be reclassified and deployed to regular
units starting on Aug. 1.

In addition, the celebrity soldiers who work as anchors on the
Defense's radio and TV programs will be replaced by internal staff.

The celebrity soldiers in question are facing discipline for using
cell phones and leaving their hotels without permission.

They face punishments including rank demotion, reduction in the
number of their leave days, and detention.

Last month, SBS TV current affairs program "In Depth 21"
aired an investigative piece about celebrity soldiers who went to a massage
parlor after a military concert in Chuncheon, Gangwon province.

The SBS news crew secretly followed and filmed the soldiers after
the concert when the soldiers went back to their motel.

The celebrity soldiers were filmed using cell phones, drinking
alcohol and were out past their 10 p.m. curfew.

Se7en and Sangchu were seen going to massage parlors.

Se7en enlisted in the military last March while Sangchu started
his military service last October.

Rain was discharged from the army last July 10 and before his
release, the Defense Ministry cleared him of any wrongdoing regarding the
incident.

Last January, Rain was disciplined after he was caught dating
actress Kim Tae Hee while serving in the military.

Quoting data from the Defense Ministry, the Korea Times reported
that "32 entertainment soldiers who were discharged between November
2009 and September 2012 took 75 leave days on average, 1.7 times more than the
43 days for ordinary soldiers."